The latest political news in farm country is that former President Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs, should he be elected president, would hurt the farm economy.

A new economic study commissioned by the American Soybean Association and the National Corn Growers Association and conducted by the World Agricultural Economic and Environmental Services found that “U.S. soybean farmers (could) lose an average of $3.6 to $5.9 billion in annual production value” while “U.S. corn farmers (could) lose an average of $0.9 to $1.4 billion in annual production value” if Trump aims tariffs at China.

The study recalls the trade war with China in 2018-2019, “that led to $27 billion in lost agricultural exports in that stretch. The Trump administration responded by using the Commodity Credit Corp. to spend $23 billion on ad-hoc subsidies to farmers under the Market Facilitation Program. China responded after the trade war with record-breaking purchases that totaled $59.2 billion over a two-year stretch (2020-2021) but still fell short of the $80 billion in commitments, the study cites.”

The study also said that a trade war with China would benefit Brazil and Argentina, which would grow their production of corn and soybeans to make up for a potential China shortfall.

I hope that Trump will remember this if he gets reelected and that he consults with farmers and ranchers before he makes any bold moves that would disrupt ag trade.

The farm economy is not good currently and the absence of a new farm bill has not helped the situation.

While tariffs could become an issue under a Trump presidency, there are many other issues under the current presidency that Vice President Harris could carry over that are also harmful to U.S. farmers and ranchers.

The ones that come to mind are climate change regulations that could derail the livestock industry (unless we can control cow burps), electric vehicle mandates that would not work for farms and ranches, the Biden Administrations goal to conserve 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030, and the failed U.S. Waters of the U.S. initiative, which will probably be revived in some form and inflationary pricing that has raised the price of inputs, which is one of the reasons the farm economy is wavering. And, as with every American, farmers and ranchers are dealing with inflation that has increased the price of food, fuel, insurance and taxes.  

In electing the next president, farmers and ranchers must decide which candidate will benefit or harm them more.

I have already voted, and I hope everyone goes to the polls because if you don’t vote you can’t complain about the outcome of the election.